I was flying my drone while a friend of mine was walking his dog, and all I could think about was, could I lift that dog with my drone? Well, I did some research and this is what I found.
Can a drone lift a dog? A drone can lift a dog, but it all depends on the size of the dog and the lifting power of the drone. The DJI might be able to lift around 3 pounds, and an x-small dog weighs between 1-10lbs. So the dog is going to have to be very small. It is not the safest thing to try, but it is possible.
Now that you know that it is possible for a drone to carry your dog, you probably want to find out what kind of drone you’ll need. Continue reading to find out.
What Kind of Drone Can Lift a Dog?
Drones are capable of lots of things and it is only natural to wonder what else they may be capable of doing. One of the things drones are capable of doing is lifting objects.
Now before I let you know which drone can lift your dog, I feel it best to first tell you that I do not condone this activity and it is very dangerous to attempt. I’m only sharing this information out of interest’s sake, and not to use it to try and lift your dog.
If you do try it, your drone might fly away with your below dog and cause havoc. That’s exactly what happened to this guy…
That being said, to lift a “dog” there are two factors that need to be considered.
- The first factor is the size of the dog that needs to be lifted. like any living thing dogs come in all shapes and sizes depending on the breed. You cant expect to lift a Great Dane with a DJI Mavic Mini, that would just be a recipe for disaster.
- The second thing you need to consider is the type of drone. Drones come in many sizes all depending on what the purpose of the drone is. There are heavy-lifting drones that were designed to lift large heavy objects. These drones are used on the set of large Hollywood productions in order to lift the heavy camera gear needed to make a movie. There are also smaller drones that are used by the everyday drone enthusiast like you and me, these drones might not be able to lift a Great Dane, but there are some breeds of dog that regular commercial drones can lift.
| Drone Type: | Payload: |
| DJI spark | 0.3 lbs |
| DJI Mavic pro | 2 lbs |
| DJI Phantom 3 | 1.7 lbs |
| DJI Phantom 4 | 2 lbs |
| DJI Inspire 2 | 1.79 lbs |
Here are some drone types and the dogs they can possibly lift:
- DJI Phantom 4 – the DJI Phantom 4 is a drone that normal drone enthusiasts around the world use. It is only supposed to lift 1 pound of weight which might not seem like a lot but the primary use for the Phantom 4 is an image capturing so it was never made to carry heavy payloads. That being said, the Phantom 4 can still lift a small dog into the air and this has actually been tried before.
- Hexacopters – These are the types of drones that are referred to as prosumer drones. This is the middle ground between professional drones and consumer drones, these drones have the power to carry a heavier payload which means if you are a photographer it allows you to add heavy accessories such as gimbals and GoPros or if you are trying to take your dog for a little ride too. This type of drone is built to handle heavier payloads and usually can carry up to 6.5 pounds which we all know can be pushed a bit further. This drone can cost you anywhere between $1000 to $2000.
- Heavy Payload Drones (Alta 8) – These drones are similar in a way to the Hexacopters but are built and designed in a way to be able to carry heavier payloads as well as being able to move faster. Many people in the film industry recommend the Alta 8 drone from Freefly Systems. This drone is made for the professional drone pilots out there and with 8 powerful motors and being able to carry about 39.5 pounds it will definitely be able to lift most dogs. But nothing this good comes without a heavy price tag. If you really wish to conduct this experiment it will cost you between $14,500 and $16,000. I think we can all agree that this price tag is a little too much for an experiment.
- Air taxis – The Air Taxi drones are large drones capable of lifting hundreds of pounds. These drones are still in development and are set to become the future in travel for humans. Drones like the Volocopter and the Ehang 184 are large powerful drones capable of lifting human beings, so there is no doubt they will be able to carry any breed of dog no matter what the size of the dog is. Drones this advanced and of this size will cost you between $200,000 and $400,000. For this price, you would not want to waste a flight on your dog.
Is it Safe to Try to Lift Your Dog With Your Drone?
It does not really matter how much your drone can carry and if it is capable of lifting heavier payloads than the regular drones, it is not recommendable to try and lift any living creature into the air using a drone.
If you are a fellow drone enthusiast like myself, then chances are you have a regular hobby drone, like one of DJI Mavic series drones owned by many amateur pilots in the world. If so then your drone is definitely not equipped to be able to lift and carry any load and that includes a dog of any kind. Drones used for hobbies are not safe to be used to lift up a dog.
Professional drones or otherwise known as UAVs are designed to lift heavier payloads while flying. These drones are required to carry heavier payloads on the daily while continuing to fly normally. So when it comes to professional drones it is safe to lift a dog using a professional drone.
Since you know now if it is safe for you to try to lift up your dog with a drone, it does not change the fact that it still might not be morally ok for you to try and attempt this experiment. As we know animals are fragile creatures with emotions like human beings and so if you try to lift your dog with a drone it might be a traumatic experience for the dog.
This is the main reason why many have tried to stay away from trying this experiment, not because their drones are not able to perform the task but because it might not be the same experience for the animal.
Dog Walking Drone?
Just because it might not be ok to lift your dog with a drone, that does not mean that you can’t walk your dog with a drone. In today’s world filled with drones, the possibilities are endless and we will constantly see new developments such as Air Taxis, drone delivery, and even drones that clean windows.
Humans are always trying to find a way to minimize the time and effort they spend on tasks and now they have found a new way to do that with drones.
Drones Direct, a British online retailer, will set to release an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle(UAV) that is capable of walking your dog for you. The design of This drone will be based on the DJI Phantom 4 drone and will reportedly cost consumers around $2,600.
Apparently the drone will have obstacle detection technology in order to avoid obstacles and any accidents involving your dog, it is also set to have a retractable leash.
This could be really useful to most dog owners who work full-time jobs and come back home too tired to be able to spend the time walking their dog, but on the other hand, it could end disastrously, with many drone-related accidents involving pets.
Either way, its another step into the tech-filled world we see in movies and tv shows.
